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What is the smartest purchase you ever made?

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Las Panteras

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May 11, 2014
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Was going to add to the golf course opening thread but may get more action here.

I spent 10 bucks on a ball retriever at walmart about 10 years ago

Because I am such an accomplished golfer I lose 4-5 balls every time I play.

Thus, the ball retriever is the best 10 bucks I ever spent


How about you? A car? tickets to an event? Some piece of crap antique your wife insisted on buying?

A ball retriever. 10 bucks.
 
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Las Panteras said:
Was going to add to the golf course opening thread but may get more action here.

I spent 10 bucks on a ball retriever at walmart about 10 years ago

Because I am such an accomplished golfer I lose 4-5 balls every time I play.

Thus, the ball retriever is the best 10 bucks I ever spent


How about you? A car? tickets to an event? Some piece of crap antique your wife insisted on buying?

A ball retriever. 10 bucks.
Click to expand...

A lawn mower believe it or not:

I bought a Commercial walk behind mower in 1991, a 36" wide Exmark. I bought it in 1991 and used it to cut grass ~ .6 acres with some hills. I used it until 2016 until a part in the transmission broke. I traded it in on another one and got 40% of what I paid for it new.

So I got 25 years of service from a mower that saved me a ton of time ( 70% wider cut ) for $1200.
Best money I ever spent.
 
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I bought a used Saab hatchback in 2002. It was 4 years old at the time. Both my girls used it during their time at Pitt campus in Oakland. It was beaten to a pulp, basically being involved in 7 accidents. Only 1 was reported for damage. The other 6 were self inflicted as they say. I loved that car almost as much as my girls. When the second daughter graduated from Pitt in 2010 she bought a new car and my wife and I said goodbye to the Saab. The Saab actually wrote us a letter three weeks later thanking us for junking her. She had suffered enough but did the job asked of her !
 
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1981 Subaru station wagon. Bought it in 1991 for $650. It was a 4 wheel drive that could handle PA weather, drive through anything and everything. Most importantly, seats in back folded down for a perfectly flat back where I got tons of action with a girlfriend. Thing lasted 5 years, and had over 200,000 miles. I’d take it back if I could find it.
 
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Panther_in_Kentucky said:
A lawn mower believe it or not:
Click to expand...

Bingo, when I bought my house I did not have enough money to buy a riding mower, so for five summers I push mowed the 1.5 acres with a 22 inch Montgomery Ward mower. basically mowing 5 hours a week from about May 10th to July 10th, an hour here and there and two hours on Saturday. My father passed and mother sent all of us (kids)$1000 out of his insurance money...I bought a Sears riding mower for $899, best money I ever spent.
 
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RJPittPanther said:
1981 Subaru station wagon. Bought it in 1991 for $650. It was a 4 wheel drive that could handle PA weather, drive through anything and everything. Most importantly, seats in back folded down for a perfectly flat back where I got tons of action with a girlfriend. Thing lasted 5 years, and had over 200,000 miles. I’d take it back if I could find it.
Click to expand...
Your girlfriend or the car? ;)
 
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Las Panteras said:
Was going to add to the golf course opening thread but may get more action here.

I spent 10 bucks on a ball retriever at walmart about 10 years ago
Panther_in_Kentucky said:
A lawn mower believe it or not:

I bought a Commercial walk behind mower in 1991, a 36" wide Exmark. I bought it in 1991 and used it to cut grass ~ .6 acres with some hills. I used it until 2016 until a part in the transmission broke. I traded it in on another one and got 40% of what I paid for it new.

So I got 25 years of service from a mower that saved me a ton of time ( 70% wider cut ) for $1200.
Best money I ever spent.
Click to expand...
I bought a John Deere riding lawn mower in 1989 for about $1400. I finally had to buy a new one this past fall. Not because the mower died but the mower deck rusted. The engine still ran great. Of course I bought another JD with a Kawasaki engine. My other best money spent is my stereo system. I won't say how much I spent on that, but sounds incredible.


Because I am such an accomplished golfer I lose 4-5 balls every time I play.

Thus, the ball retriever is the best 10 bucks I ever spent


How about you? A car? tickets to an event? Some piece of crap antique your wife insisted on buying?

A ball retriever. 10 bucks.
Click to expand...
 
My used Kia Sedona minivan. Bit the bullet to give the kids more room and haul more stuff on vacation. Going through separation and it will be a little big for the three of us but I'm keeping it. Its been great and really has some nice power. Can also throw a bed in the back for quick car camping.
 
DARE license plate.

I tend to open it on the open road, or in straight stretches in slightly rural areas, probably been pulled over more than a dozen times.

I dont mind paying the ticket, I get that I broke the speed limit.

But, that DARE liscence got me a disobeying a posted vs the moving violation, saved me half the points, a bigger insurance hit and having to retake my exam.
 
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Met a lot of really nice kids with this purchase.

free-candy.jpg
 
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I love anything that is simple and works perfectly.

A base Honda Civic I bought for my daughters when the oldest got her license at 16 and sold 14 years later when the youngest graduated from Pitt and moved to NYC. Never put a penny into it other than normal maintenance and it ran like it was new on the day I sold it.

I have a very simple looking device that slices and cores a pineapple in less than 30 seconds.

Just realized the plain black gore-tex rain jacket I'm wearing is about 15 years old and still beads water like it was new. It's saved me from getting wet during countless rainy football games.
 
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JS School said:
I love anything that is simple and works perfectly.

A base Honda Civic I bought for my daughters when the oldest got her license at 16 and sold 14 years later when the youngest graduated from Pitt and moved to NYC. Never put a penny into it other than normal maintenance and it ran like it was new on the day I sold it.

I have a very simple looking device that slices and cores a pineapple in less than 30 seconds.

Just realized the plain black gore-tex rain jacket I'm wearing is about 15 years old and still beads water like it was new. It's saved me from getting wet during countless rainy football games.
Click to expand...

I am worthless with car repairs or maintenance, and grew up dirt poor and had beater cars like two tone 83 Ford Escort and power blue (with one of those foamy type roofs) K-Car that were coin flips if they were going to start when I went out in the morning to go to work into my early 20s.

When I was able to get a decent job, I scatched together a down payment and did my homeowork, and I just wanted the most reliable car possible, and it was a Honda Civic - popped for the EX, two door red (and that DARE liscence plate was put to GOOD use for that ...).

Put 200,000 on it, traded it in to the salesman who sold it to me to get into an Accord (just had our second kid), and he actually turned around and bought it and gave it to his HS daughter who used it through college and into her first job.
 
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Gutter Guards.

I have over 300' of gutters and live in a heavily wooded area. I had to pull the leaves and filth out by hand about 3 times the first Summer we lived in the house. It's dangerous, you're up there 30' in the air on your hands and knees pulling junk out of your gutters and putting it into garbage bags. No more. Had those things installed for $3,000 (5 years, 0% interest so I pay like $40 per month) and I never have to go up there again.
 
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Las Panteras said:
Was going to add to the golf course opening thread but may get more action here.

I spent 10 bucks on a ball retriever at walmart about 10 years ago

Because I am such an accomplished golfer I lose 4-5 balls every time I play.

Thus, the ball retriever is the best 10 bucks I ever spent


How about you? A car? tickets to an event? Some piece of crap antique your wife insisted on buying?

A ball retriever. 10 bucks.
Click to expand...
My 2011 Buick Lucerne. I absolutely love it. My nephew called it my "old man car". He was right.
 
Jeffburgh said:
I am worthless with car repairs or maintenance, and grew up dirt poor and had beater cars like two tone 83 Ford Escort and power blue (with one of those foamy type roofs) K-Car that were coin flips if they were going to start when I went out in the morning to go to work into my early 20s.

When I was able to get a decent job, I scatched together a down payment and did my homeowork, and I just wanted the most reliable car possible, and it was a Honda Civic - popped for the EX, two door red (and that DARE liscence plate was put to GOOD use for that ...).

Put 200,000 on it, traded it in to the salesman who sold it to me to get into an Accord (just had our second kid), and he actually turned around and bought it and gave it to his HS daughter who used it through college and into her first job.
Click to expand...
I had 4 accords and a Civic starting back in '78. All were great cars.
 
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lilspainishflea said:
Gutter Guards.

I have over 300' of gutters and live in a heavily wooded area. I had to pull the leaves and filth out by hand about 3 times the first Summer we lived in the house. It's dangerous, you're up there 30' in the air on your hands and knees pulling junk out of your gutters and putting it into garbage bags. No more. Had those things installed for $3,000 (5 years, 0% interest so I pay like $40 per month) and I never have to go up there again.
Click to expand...

Two hours after I read this, four minutes apart, I received two separate emails advertising gutter guards. Probably just a coincidence, but kind of scary to think someone is tracking what threads I read on Pantherlair. Or maybe it's because I posted in this thread.
 
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interesting read.

my favorite purchase would be my Nikon D3200 (though recently upgraded). it's opened me up to the best hobby i can think of.

smartest purchase would be my first house tied with trading in my F-150 for a Tacoma.

smartest decision was obviously attending Pitt. Got a great degree in Engineering, met the best friends i've ever had, put me in Pittsburgh and led to many other great things. following Pitt sports on the other hand... haha
 
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My Wife.
It took a lot of energy and money to get her interested early on but it did turn out to be the best purchase ever.
The woman is smart, fun, cheap doesn't like wasting money, keeps me from wasting money, and knows how to make money. How can you beat that.
 
  • Impulse purchased Beyer Dynamic DT 990 PRO 250 OHM headphones on Black Friday 3 or 4 years ago. After hundreds of hours of use, I've gotten my money's worth many times over.
  • My far-too-expensive mechanical keyboard. Use it literally every day and it's so satisfying.
  • Allen Edmonds Park Avenue shoes in black. Still going strong after a couple resoles.
 
1978 Chevy Malibu for $200. While at Pitt my daily driver's motor crapped out. Bought this Malibu off of one of my dad's friends as an emergency replacement. Stunk like an old King Edward cigar inside. Drove it for another 2 years after the purchase. Was rear ended on Rt 30 got roughly $400 for that accident, then drove it until the inspection was almost up. Junked it and got $75 for it since it ran.
 
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eharmony subscription - met my wife this way
crockpot - I think $70 for something that made life much easier, especially when single
My first pair of good running shoes - by good, I mean good for the way I run and my feet. Go to a running store, I have them watch you run, go with one of their recommendations, and avoid pain and injuries because you went to box store for convenience
Google Chromecast - because most smart TV's are trash...launching whatever you want to watch from your phone to your TV is much faster, easier, and way more stable

Some other things - a good tool will make a job easier and save your body, a good grill is heavenly, and a Vitamix is really impressive
 
It’s tough to name one thing, but somewhere in my Top Five would be my iMac.

After two prior (non-Apple) desktop computers, my iMac was such a welcomed, problem-free acquisition. It encouraged me to remain Apple-loyal over the coming years, leading me to buy an iPad, three iPods, and several iPhones.
 
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